Roche Romania expecting 5% sales growth in 2010

2010-03-08

Roche Romania, the second largest drug vendor in the country, expects its sales to increase by only 5% in euro terms this year, according to Dan Zamonea, the country director quoted in Ziarul Financiar. A profit margin of 3-4% has been budgeted. Roche’s pessimistic sales forecast reflects the changes in market conditions in Romania, including the fact that the 5-11% clawback tax imposed on sales of reimbursed Rx drugs last year will not be abolished in 2010.
In 2009 Roche Romania earned sales revenues of RON 700m (€167m), 30% more than a year ago, in lei, and 18% in euro. The company reported a 5-6% profit margin, based on preliminary estimates. Forty percent of the company’s country sales consist of cancer medicines, but Dan Zamonea does not expect this market subdivision to grow in the future. Other therapeutic areas targeted by the company include anaemia, viral infections (hepatitis, flu and AIDS) and polyarthritis. Roche sells only Rx drugs in Romania, and the best selling medicines in 2009 were Neorecormon, Pegasys and Avastin, which generated sales revenues of RON 100m (€24m) in all.